Rodgers to take reins of city administration

By LPR Staff
Editor/POST-REGISTER

During a brief meeting on Tuesday evening, the Lockhart City Council appointed Vance Rodgers as Interim City Manager, to fill the vacancy left by the resignation of City Manager Clovia English. Rodgers, a long-time City of Lockhart employee, is currently the Director of Public Works, and has been acting as Assistant City Manag

er for some time.
According to Mayor James “Jimmy” Bertram, the council has not yet discussed the interviewing and hiring process for a permanent city manager, but they will do so during their next regular meeting.
English, who recently accepted a position in Corinth, Texas, will be leaving the City of Lockhart on Nov. 2.
Representatives from the Caldwell County Hispanic Chamber of Commerce attended Tuesday”s meeting to make a presentation and say a warm farewell to English.
“We thank you for all of the work you have done for Lockhart,” said Angela Meitler, the organization”s treasurer. “And we wish you the very best in your future endeavors.”
Just before the end of the meeting, members of the council mirrored those sentiments.
In other business, the council approved the official 2006 tax roll, which includes a tax levy of $2.63 million for the City of Lockhart.
According to Finance Director John Washburn, the city”s budget was written assuming a slightly lower tax levy.
“We were worried because of all the ARB [appraisal review board] hearings,” Washburn said. “I was conservative with my estimate – maybe more conservative than I needed to be.”
The official tax levy amounts to nearly $53,000 more than the city estimated in the Fiscal Year 2006-2007 budget.
A disgruntled citizen approached the council to discuss a recently-introduced $300 licensing fee for transient and street vendors in the city. The citizen, who had hoped to sell his watermelon crop at a “farmers” market” table on the Square, opted not to for fear that he could not turn a profit on the melons after paying the fee.
After hearing his complaint, Bertram explained to the gentleman that the fee does not apply to agricultural vendors.
In brief news:
Property on Pecos Street was rezoned from Commercial Light Business to Residential Medium Density. According to City Planner Dan Gibson, who brought the request before the council, the new zoning now reflects the zoning of the neighborhood where the property is located.
The council considered and approved participation in a cooperative purchasing program, in part in an effort to acquire additional police vehicles at a lower rate.
They approved a contract renewal between the City of Lockhart and the Caldwell County Appraisal District for the assessment of property values and collection of taxes in 2007.
The Lockhart City Council meets on the first and third Tuesday of each month in the Glosserman Conference Room at Lockhart City Hall. Meetings begin at 7:30 p.m. and are open to the public. They are also broadcast on Time Warner Cable Channel 10.